Thursday, March 31, 2011

Are You a Sports Mom? (and a giveaway!)

Do you spend an unusual amount of time shuttling kids to and from various athletic practices, or sitting on stadium bleachers...or a folding chair along a sideline? How much time do you spend each week telling your young athlete things like, "Get a drink!" or "Be sure to put a drink in your bag."

If this describes you, then you might be a Sports Mom! In fact, According to a study conducted by Glass Box research in January 2011, 7/10 moms with kids in Middle school or High school have kids in sports.

Meet Wanda Pratt! She's a sports mom too.

As a fellow Sports Mom I understand how you prioritize your schedule each day, how you juggle getting your kids to all their different events, and how you worry about what your children are eating and drinking. (I also know you spend a lot of money on sporting equipment! Keep reading for your chance to win a $100 gift card to Dick's Sporting Goods!)

When we're getting ready for one of Angela's events, it starts days ahead! As Angela's mom, it's my job to make sure she's eating properly, and is staying hydrated. This is hard to do when she's at school, because I KNOW she's not drinking enough during her busy school day. I know her staff at school tries to make her take drink breaks throughout the day, but let's face it, a couple sips of the disgusting drinking fountain at school just is not enough!

A few months ago I started sending the small bottles of Gatorade to school with her. She does have a morning snack time, so I figured she's at least getting that little bit during the day. Since she likes Gatorade and can suck down a bottle in a few seconds, I knew she'd drink it! The four days a week she also had floor hockey practice I'd put an extra bottle in her backpack as well, always reminding her, "When the coach gives you a break for drinks, get your Gatorade out of your bag!"

Did you know 75% of Sports Moms don't know that in order to help promote muscle recovery, their athletes should consume protein within a 30-60 minute window post-exercise? How many of you just thought to yourself, "Ok, I am one of those 75%"

I have a confession to make. I was one of the 75%! I spend all this time making sure Angela is hydrated, and eating well, but what do we usually end up doing after a meet or practice? Let's see...about 1/2 the time we stop at McDonalds or something on the way home. So yeah, she's getting the carbs necessary for muscle recovery but 1) it's not soon enough and 2) it's crap! This is where you can throw in the "bad mom of the year" award to me! LOL.

Gatorade is now joining forces with Sports Moms to help you help your young athlete be the best that he or she can be. Visit the Official site just for Sports Moms. This site is about promoting our kids and helping them BECOMEanything they want.

There you'll find articles and advice where you can learn more about how to help your young athlete BECOME anything she or he wants to be, including how to avoid common sports injuries, and workout nutrition. Also, visit their YouTube page to meet some very inspiring moms!

The only thing I don't like about their new site is the fact there is not ONE athlete with a disability pictured. This is the year of the Special Olympics World Games in Athens Greece. (remember Angela was in the running to go? (link to previous blog post) While what my child does may not look like a highly competitive event, she spends just as much time training, and expends just as much physical energy as her non-disabled peers, maybe even more considering the work involved for her to get from one end of the pool to the other! Go have a look at the site, and contact Gatorade if you'd like to see athletes with disabilities featured!

Now what about that $100 give away to Dicks Sporting Goods? If you're a Sports Mom, leave a comment and tell me what you do to help prepare your young athlete to be physically ready before events, and recover after events. I'll choose a comment to win a $100 Visa Gift card! This offer is good March 31st - April 30th, 2011.

Rules:

No duplicate comments.
You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry
a) Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post
b) Tweet about this promotion and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment
c) Blog about this promotion and leave the URL to that post in a comment on
d) For those with no Twitter or blog, Visit the Official Rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.

This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older. Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail.You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.

Kennedy is in ballet and tap, so her recital nights are HUGE. We too prepare days in advance! We pack a bag with snacks, drinks, and lots of tights because she ALWAYS rips them! We usually throw in a book or crayons or something too to keep her occupied between her numbers... it's a 2 hour recital after all. The day of, practice starts at 8am then we go home, get ready, do the hair bun and spray it until it's plastic lol, then head back to the auditorium where someone stands in line for an hour to get good seats while I help her get ready in the dressing room. It's exhausting, for everyone! We all sleep well that night! I love it though!

My other kids have taken a break from sports right now, but they are looking forward to getting back into it after we move. Gotta love being a sports mom! :)

well, HE EATS PROPERLY & DRINKS PLENTY OF WATER (ON MY DEMAND, OF COURSE) & GETS ENOUGH SLEEP THAT IT ENDS UP BEING A REALLY HEALTHY THING FOR HIM @ HIS AGE! PLUS HE LOVES MAKING FRIENDS! kytah00@yahoo.com

To prepare my kids I give them green smoothies! They are the absolute best thing for my kids and it keeps them going all day..I advocate them for all kids because it has helped my fam tremendously!Thanks for this splendid giveawayanashct [at] yahoo [dot] com

We made sure they were well rested and I don't recall what the benefit was but we gave them a banana before each game. We also made sure they were well hydrated and provided a snack and gatorade to replenish after the game.Dove056 at aol dot com

My daughter is heavily involved in soccer, my son in baseball. There is always a small meal before sports and plenty of fluids during. My daughter suffered a knee injury and after lots of PT, is back in the game. We keep her in strength training at the Y to keep those muscles strong so she does not suffer future injuries.

My kids aren't in any organized sports. We spend weekends hiking and geocaching. I make sure my kids get enough sleep before we go and also take along plenty of water and good snacks for along the way.chipdip2010(at)hotmail(dot)com

Yes I am a sports mom. My kids are in soccer, competitive cheerleading, wrestling and cross country. So just like you most of my weekends are spent camping out in a chair or on a bleacher rooting my kids on. I wouldn't change a thing though. I love watching them do what they do best. I am always so proud of them win or loose. I have never missed a game or match. They are only young once and I plan on cherishing every moment! shelleymikey at gmail dot com

My sports mom days are long past (although grandma days are probably just about upon me, but the main thing I had to do for my daughter was to give emotional support. She loved gymnastics, but was not in the top group of contenders and had to keep in mind that doing it for fun was also worthwhile.

My son is now grown and doing his own thing but when he was little and at home, sports were very important in his life. He played hockey, his favorite. Making sure he ate well was extremely important. Hockey took a lot of energy and he needed good fuel in his body to maintain a busy schedule. I also did a lot of cheering and screaming. Had to keep up with so much energy.

I always make sure my daughter eats a good meal before her soccer games and we pack fruit and plenty of water for after. I confess we've been guilty of the fast food drive thru after games too!nrdunningATgmailDOTcom

Nolan loves him some G2! "The red one mom"! He is not playing sports this year, but we will be sure to pack up some G2 when he does play! I buy it by the case. The little bottles are perfect to put anywhere!

I'm a Marine Mom now, and I tell you what I was a sports Mom before and they are not much different. Believe it or not it was my son who taught me the protein portion!! He would eat 6 meals a day (small but full of protein), hydrate constantly and that included Gatorade. He is now a US Marine deployed in the Middle East and I have been sending him G2 drink packets, and tuna to keep hydrated and protein in while service our great Country!!

When I was a sports mom, I made the same fast food mistake after practice or games. I wish I hadn't. If I had it to do over again, I would have been more prepared with healthy protein snacks afterwards.

I'll admit, Gatorade has been a staple for years in my house. Because we are on a budget, my kids know these are for "game day" only. However, I wasn't aware of the protein recommendation after games. This is definately something I'll be trying to improve on!pauline15_01 at hotmail dot com

I don't actually have any kids, but if I did, I would find it most helpful to know exactly what nutrients they loose during play so that I could better give them just those nutrients at home and not give them things they don't need or should not get! That way they would always be at their best!Angie14earth at gmail dot com

I am not a sports mom or dad! LOL I'm not really into sports and never have been...more of a nature person here. BUT if I had kids, I would definitely research proper nutrition for athletes so that they would always be at their best!Scottnynekats at gmail dot com

My children and grandchildren are all adults now and the great grandkids aren't quite old enough to start participating. But I was a sports mom and grandma for a long time. Besides the nutrition and hydration aspects I think the most important thing you can do for your child is provide positive support. It's especially important when they have a bad day, they need to know that you can't always be a winner but you can always enjoy the game.

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